Today I saw “woolers” listed for sale on an online group for $35.00 per rabbit. I just about fainted.
Pricing is a sticky subject; on the one hand, people who love rabbits breed rabbits because they love rabbits. On the other hand, people who love the rabbits they breed spend the amount of time equivalent to working a ¾ time job- and spend the same amount of money that they would have made working a ¾ time job in order to breed the rabbits they love; it’s a catch 22.
No one who loves rabbits and breeds them wants to sound greedy; doing so makes one sound exploitive or that one is in it for the wrong reasons.
However, breeding and caring for rabbits in a responsible way is a job and, at least in the US, everyone who works is entitled to just compensation.
My mom was a teacher. She loved teaching and put everything of herself into her students and career- yet she still expected to be paid- who wouldn’t?
Would anyone accuse a teacher for being in it (teaching) for the wrong reasons because she brings home a paycheck?
The truth is that it is crazy to expect anyone to work for free.
Also, it isn’t cheap to breed and care for rabbits; there is the high- quality hay and pellets, medicine, vet bills, cages… How is it wrong to expect to break even?
Rabbit breeders provide a service; they put time, thought, research and effort into breeding so that rabbit lovers can reap the benefits of a well- bred rabbit. They feed, shelter and care for the rabbits that other people buy and enjoy. Rabbit breeders are on call 24/ 7- if a rabbit needs assistance at night, we’re on it.
Why should the service we provide be free?
Another thing to consider is that Angora ownership is a luxury rather than a necessity. Angoras are luxurious animals that produce top- notch fiber- expensive fiber! Shouldn’t the value of Angora wool have some effect on the price of Angoras?
After all, Angora rabbits are gifts that keep giving in the form of wool- throughout their entire life. Isn’t this worth something?
If I charge very little for my rabbits and can’t break even, I either must change my standards of care or go broke. Thus, if Angora lovers want Angoras that receive top- notch care, they ought to be willing to pay for it. It’s that simple.
Furthermore, my rabbits- even my “woolers” (the rabbits that are only good for producing wool) are worth what they are worth. Depreciating their value to undercut competition or make a sale does them an injustice. People willing to pay more do so because they understand the true worth of a well- bred rabbit- wooler or pedigreed.
Last, I have no idea what to think about breeders who charge $35.00 for an Angora rabbit. I’m still flabbergasted.
If the rabbit produces a low volume of low- quality wool, fine then; he might as well be priced at the going rate of any other non- Angora.
However, to ask so little for a rabbit that performs a function well- the function he and his Angora kin are meant to perform- is simply wrong.
Not only does it do the rabbit injustice but, in addition, I have to wonder if the worth placed on his existence will be reflected in the care he receives once he is sold?
Experience dictates that people care for things better if they pay more for them.
Moreover, a breeder who sells rabbits at such a low price does so at the peril of his fellow breeders; he does them a huge injustice. He spits on the time, effort, research, and capital invested by the rest of us.
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